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Dianne Willer-Sly is a family nurse practitioner who has been active in nurse practitioner organizations for the past 30 years. She was the secretary for the Task Force to create a state wide nurse practitioner organization in Texas that led to establish of Texas Nurse Practitioners (TNP) in 1989. She was the first secretary for the TNP organization as it grew to meet the professional needs of nurse practitioners across the state of Texas. Dianne was also a founding board member and later chair of the local Austin (Texas) Area Nurse Practitioner Alliance from 1986-1999, established to foster NP networking on the local level. Dianne move to Minnesota in 1999 and, along with other Minnesota Nurse Practitioner (MNNP) founders, was active in the movement to create MNNP. Dianne is passionate about the nurse practitioner role. She is an assistant clinical professor at the University Of Minnesota School of Nursing and has a faculty practice in geriatrics and adult primary care with HealthPartners Geriatrics in the Twin Cities. Dianne received her BSN from the University of Rochester (1982), her MS in Public Health Nursing (FNP track) from the University of Illinois at Chicago (1985) and her DNP from the University of Minnesota (2008).

Sandy Paddock is an Associate Professor at Winona State University in the Graduate Nursing Program. Additionally, Sandy maintains clinical practice as a Family Nurse Practitioner in the Employee Health Department of the St. Cloud Hospital and at Riche Eye Clinic in Faribault, Mn. She is a Certified Medical Examiner and a Public Health Nurse. Sandy earned her BSN (1997), MSN in Nursing Education (2003) and post-Master Certificate as a Family Nurse Practitioner (2009) from Winona State University (WSU). In 2014, she earned a Doctor of Nursing Practice from St. Catherine University in St. Paul, Mn. Sandy has practiced in a variety of settings, including long term care, acute care, and ambulatory care settings. Additionally, she has over a decade of teaching experience in nursing education. She is a member of Sigma Theta Tau, the National Organization for Nurse Practitioner Faculties, and the American Association of Nurse Practitioners. Sandy strives to serve as an advocate for patients and a liaison for nurse practitioners across Minnesota.

Kelsey Lessard, DNP, APRN, CNP is a Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner and currently practices in Anoka county at a reproductive and sexual health clinic as a Nurse Practitioner and Clinical Manager. She is also the Medical Director for a group of clinics in East Central Minnesota. Kelsey is a three-time graduate of the University of Minnesota with a Doctorate of Nursing Practice degree, a Master in Nursing and a Bachelor’s degree in Physiology. For her doctoral project, she implemented a community-based program that increased sex trafficking awareness among healthcare providers. Kelsey is passionate about providing quality care to underserved populations.

Dr. Mary Benbenek is a nurse practitioner with dual certification as a family nurse practitioner and pediatric nurse practitioner. She has worked as a nurse practitioner for the past 24 years primarily in clinics serving the uninsured and underinsured. She is the coordinator for the Family Nurse Practitioner area of study at the University of Minnesota and has taught advanced practice nursing students for the past nineteen years. She continues to practice in a community clinic setting 1 day per week. Research areas include health promotion, community participatory research, nursing education, and immigrant health issues.

Melanie Bourke, DNP, APRN, PMHNP-BC is a 2017 graduate of the University of Minnesota Doctorate in Nursing program and is board certified to provide Psychiatric- Mental Health care across the lifespan. She maintains her clinical practice at Park Nicollet with a focus on adolescents and adults diagnosed with psychotic disorders, including schizophrenia spectrum and bipolar disorders and neurodevelopmental disorders (ASD, ADHD). Melanie has been working in community mental health for more than 13 years and has a strong interest in working with underserved populations.

Maria Ruud DNP, APRN, WHNP-C is a Clinical Assistant Professor at the University of Minnesota School of Nursing in the graduate nursing program. Maria's clinical experience spans over 25 years and she maintains her current clinical practice at a teen sexual and reproductive healthcare clinic. Maria served in the Minnesota House of Representatives for three terms and is the Legislative Liaison for MNNP. She has a special interest in public policy and working with underserved populations.

Sara McCumber, DNP, APRN, CNP, CNS. Sara is a board certified Adult NP, Adult Gero NP, Gero NP, Family NP and Adult Health CNS. She is an Associate Professor in the Graduate Nurse Practitioner program at The College of St. Scholastica, Duluth, MN. She has been an NP for 18 years and maintains a clinic practice at Essentia Health Neurology with memory disorder patients and their families. Sara has clinical interests in dementia care management, care coordination, caregiver support, chronic illness management and advance care planning. Sara has 30+ years of active involvement in professional nursing organizations including the Minnesota Nurses Association, MN Organization of Registered Nurses, American Nurses Association and American Nurses Credentialing Center.

Dr. Mary Dierich graduated from the University of Minnesota with a BS, MS and Ph.D in Nursing as well as a MS in Health Services Research, Policy and Administration from the School of Public Health. With her strong interest in geriatrics, she was a MAGEC fellow, a Minnesota Hartford Geriatric Education Scholar, as well as a John A. Hartford pre-doctoral scholar. Her primary research interest has been in medication mismanagement and its effect on readmission of older adults. She also has actively worked with transitions in care and interprofessional education. She has given hundreds of talks and written many articles over the course of her 28 years as an NP. After having her fill of urology (no pun intended), she moved to a generalist practice in geriatrics and was an associate clinical professor at the University of Minnesota, School of Nursing. As the Adult Gerontological Nurse Practitioner Program Coordinator, she revamped the entire AGNP curriculum and several core courses. She has taught nurse practitioners in both the doctoral and master’s program over the last 17 years until her retirement from the University School of Nursing this past fall. Currently, she works part-time making home visits for frail patients in the home based medicine program at HealthPartners where she continues to practice what she preaches.

Dr. Moore is a clinical assistant professor at the University of Minnesota School of Nursing and a Certified Family Nurse Practitioner - Advanced Practice Registered Nurse. Her expertise is in family practice, integrative health and wellness, and urgent care. She has specific interests in the areas of leadership/teamwork, lifestyle modification, health promotion, nutrition/ nutritional supplementation and aromatherapy.